In his summary of oral arguments last month, Dodson wrote that he expected a quick and unanimous reversal of the lower court opinion.

UC Hastings Professor Scott Dodson, an expert in federal procedure and a regular guest contributor to the leading Supreme Court website SCOTUSblog, has correctly predicted the outcome in Sprint Communications, Inc. v. Jacobs.

The case involves the scope of the Younger doctrine, which requires federal courts to abstain from interfering with certain ongoing state proceedings. In November, Dodson wrote an analysis of the oral argument in the case, in which he predicted that the Court would rely on precedent to limit Younger. "Look for a unanimous reversal from the Court in short order," he wrote.

As predicted, the Court's opinion, issued December 10, unanimously reversed the lower courts and relied on precedent to cabin the scope of the Younger doctrine. Dodson's analysis of the opinion for SCOTUSblog is here. Dodson agrees with the Court's decision. "Court prediction is always a risky task," he confesses, "but the justices really seemed to show their cards during oral argument. I also happen to think that the Court correctly decided the case, so I am pleased with the unanimous outcome."

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